That first cup of coffee in the morning is often a cherished pleasure. However, if you have trouble with high blood pressure, anxiety, or have decided to eliminate caffeine for other reasons, you may be searching for ways to wake up in the morning without any coffee. Along with alcohol and nicotine, caffeine is one of the top three most consumed drugs in the world and about 80% of people in affluent countries use caffeine.[1] If you are trying to give up caffeine, then you may need to look for other food and drink options to help you wake up in the morning.

Steps

Method1

Waking Up with Food and Drink

1

Reduce your sugar. Reduce the amount of sugar in your diet throughout the day. Refined sugar can actually sap your energy and make you more tired. You can get the fuel your body needs by sticking with complex carbohydrates rather than the refined sugar. Complex carbohydrates are found in whole grains, legumes, beans and vegetables, especially starchy vegetables such as potatoes, winter squash, yams, and sweet potatoes.[2]

Sugar is a main source of fuel for the body. If you overdo it, you put yourself at risk for diseases such as obesity and diabetes. You can crash after a sugar rush, and those crashes are bad for your body and bad for your brain. It sets you up for needing more sugar to get yourself going again. That vicious cycle can cause fatigue and tire you out.

2

Replace coffee with decaf coffee or herbal tea. Simply replacing your morning cup of caffeinated coffee with a cup of decaf coffee or herbal tea can help you to wake up. Try to wake up with a hot cup of herbal tea instead of coffee. For some extra wake up help, add some lemon. Sweeten the tea with honey to avoid refined sugar. Try the following flavors:

Peppermint tea is a great drink to use to wake up. The scent and taste help energize you. Use peppermint tea bags or use a heaping teaspoon of dried herb per cup of tea.[3]

Ginger tea is used in many cultures instead of coffee for that first cup in the morning. Ginger is a mild stimulant and can help energize you.[4] You can use ginger tea bags or use a heaping teaspoon of finely chopped fresh ginger per cup of tea.

3

Eat fruit in the morning. Start your day off with fruit. Not only is this a healthy way to start your day, but it will also help wake you up. The following fruits are filled with vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates for energy, and antioxidants to release the energy. Try a bowl, eat a piece of, or drink the fresh juice of any of the following:

Have a glass of water. A cold glass of water can wake you right up in the morning and give you some energy. Dehydration can make you less alert in the morning. Drinking an eight ounce glass of water can help you think more clearly. Plus, after sleeping all night, you need to replenish the water. Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator so it’s cold in the morning.

For some extra wake up power, add some slices of fresh lemon, orange, lime, or grapefruit.

Your body is made up of 60% water and replenishing your body’s water is important for increasing mental focus and fatigue. It can also help you to move more by increasing your trips to the bathroom, which can help you to wake up.

5

Have energizing foods. There are certain foods that you can eat in the morning to give you more energy. Carbohydrates and protein are great sources of energy first thing in the morning. You can pick on of these or a combination of all of these to help boost your energy when you wake up.

Carbohydrates work well because they convert quickly to glucose, which gives you energy.

If you want to make your carbohydrate energy last longer, you can add some protein in with your carbs. Protein helps slow down the rate your body absorbs the energy, which helps the energy last longer.

Avoid eating foods high in fat. These will cause you to be sluggish.[6]

Method2

Using Alternate Ways to Wake Up

1

Turn on the lights. If you’re struggling to wake up in the morning, immediately turn on the lights. Flip on the overhead light or any other bright light you have. Bright lights help make you alert and more awake. Make sure the lights are on as you are getting dressed or eating breakfast.

You can try natural light by opening your blinds to let the sunshine in or eat breakfast outside.

2

Exercise. Working out can wake you right up. Even a relatively light workout, such as stretching along with some weights or a short time on the elliptical or stationary bicycle, can wake you up. You may consider going for a walk or taking your dog out for a walk, or going for a quick run.

You can also go to a class at the gym, go for a swim, do yoga or Tai Chi, or load up your favorite music and dance.

3

Take a shower. A morning shower can help you wake up, but it needs to be a specific kind of shower. Take a hot shower, ending with a cool rinse. You should turn the temperature as cold as you can and stand under the spray for 30 seconds. Then turn the spray as hot as you can stand for 30 seconds, then turn the water as cold as you can stand it for 30 seconds once again.[7]

You can try just a cold shower instead of a hot shower.

This method is easily combined with the workout. Wake up, workout, shower, and more than likely, you will be wide awake.

4

Try aromatherapy. Essential oils can help you wake up in the morning. Some essential oils are traditionally used to wake you up, increase alertness, and keep you alert. Pour these scents into water and use a humidifier to spread them throughout the room, use an oil burner to spread the scent, sprinkle a few drops on a sachet, or simply sniff the oil in the bottle. Good scents to try are:

Apply some acupressure. Acupressure means you either apply pressure or gently massage certain points on your body. Apply pressure to the following points on your body for three to five minutes to help you wake up:[9]

On the top of your head.

The webbing between your thumb and index finger.

Right below each knee cap, at the front of your leg.

At the base of your neck right where the neck meets the spine.

On the ball of each foot.

6

Get enough sleep. Make sure you get enough sleep each night. You need seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Caffeine is often used to stimulate because someone really needs the boost. If you get enough sleep, you may find you don’t actually need coffee every morning.[10]

Try going to sleep about 30 to 60 minutes earlier than you usually do every night and see if this helps to cut down on your desire for caffeine.

7

See your doctor. If you feel like you need caffeine to wake up, then you might be dependent on it or you might be using it to treat an underlying condition. For example, depression can cause fatigue, which one might try to treat with a cup of coffee to get a temporary feeling of alertness and elevated mood.[11]

Talk to your doctor if you are having a hard time going without caffeine due to fatigue, inability to concentrate, or other symptoms that you are using caffeine to mask.

Method3

Understanding Caffeine

1

Watch for caffeine in common products. Many products that people consume in the morning contain caffeine. If you have decided to eliminate caffeine, you need to be able to identify products with caffeine. Common caffeine products are coffee, soda, caffeinated teas, energy drinks, and chocolate.[12]

Learn the positive side effects of caffeine. Caffeine can affect different people differently. Many of the effects of coffee are positive. Caffeine is a mild stimulant and has been linked to a number of benefits, including decreasing the risk of Type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. Moderate coffee drinking (about two to five cups a day) has also been linked to reducing the risk of gallstones, colon cancer, and Parkinson’s disease.[13]

Moderate coffee drinking can also help with cognitive and memory issues.

3

Recognize the negative side effects of caffeine. Caffeine can interfere with sleep, which can cause insomnia or exacerbate pre-existing sleep problems. In addition, for some, caffeine can increase anxiety, nervousness, irritability, and depression.[14]

Espresso can increase the blood level of cholesterol. In some people, coffee can slightly increase the risk of heart disease and increase the heart rate.

These negative effects tend to occur in people who have excessive amounts of caffeine, such as more than five or six cups of coffee a day a day.

Community Q&A

If this question (or a similar one) is answered twice in this section, please click here to let us know.

Tips

Be patient. It may take some time, but if you have decided to give up caffeine in the morning, know that there are lots of ways to still wake up and meet the day.

Keep in mind that caffeine withdrawal can cause headaches, drowsiness, and reduced alertness. These symptoms may begin within 12 hours of cutting out caffeine and peak between 24 to 48 hours without caffeine.[15] Reduce your caffeine intake gradually to avoid or reduce caffeine withdrawal symptoms.